Hard Coding, Soft Words
by Viktor Mayrin
Summary: Prize fic from my 100 followers giveaway on Tumblr. Jaune and Pyrrha try to find the truth about an isolationist City-State, and do some truth telling of their own.


Hard Coding, Soft Words

By Viktor Mayrin

_A/N: Browncoatbrony's request for my 100 Follower giveaway on Tumblr. He wanted super fluffy Arkos cuddling in the dorm._

Pyrrha pushed the beds together after the fourth day. She wasn't sure _why_, of course. It was just something that felt better than the two lonely beds in the suite. Jaune hadn't complained, hadn't said _anything_, really. But then, they'd been busy. Ren and Nora had taken the west side of the city-state, RWBY had split up and taken the south and the east, which left them with the north. Jaune had displayed a rare and previously unknown talent of code hacking, and he'd been slowly making progress on taking control of the security hubs in the area. She'd spent her time reading a stack of books she'd managed to scrounge up in the library across the street. That, and feeling rather useless in the absence of violence and surveillance.

Pyrrha idly chewed on a stray lock of hair as she sat on the conjoined beds with her books, no longer reading but still starring at the pages in front of her when she heard the cadence in Jaune's typing suddenly increase. She looked up, the hair falling out of her mouth, to see him hunching over the keyboard and swiping more screens onto the main display.

"Fuck." He said abruptly, the unceasing tapping of his fingers against the hardline Scroll petering out. It sped up again, very briefly, before the sound of his fists hitting the table echoed through the small apartment. "_Fuck_." He said again, emphatically. "I... I need to do a physical hack."

Pyrrha looked up from her book. "Physical? As in-"

"I have to go to the actual location and do a physical breach." He sighed. "_Except _ that the security hub is behind the wall. Also it's in Ruby and Yang's sector."

"Ah." Pyrrha pressed her lips together and nodded. "And that's the complication?"

"Yeah, they're too flashy. Blake and Weiss might be able to be in and out, but that leaves the east open for an indeterminable amount of time." He made a frustrated noise as he ran his hands through his hair. "Can't call in a team, can't ask another team, can't access the objective... Alternative methods are required."

He stood up and stretch, his joints popping loudly. He made a swiping motion on the scroll, cascading the various windows and prompts to the side, leaving a a blank screen. "Just not right now. Too much coding and I can't think." He shook his head and padded into the kitchenette.

Pyrrha hesitantly put a bookmark into the novel and set it down. She absently rolled the sleeves of her jacket back over her wrists as she bit her lip. "Anything I can help with?"

Jaune poked his head out of the other room. "Not really. I mean, I think I can handle turning on the tap."

Pyrrha sighed heavily and slumped onto her side. "I feel so... unproductive."

Jaune padded back into the living area with a glass of water. "Yeah, sorry. I know it's not much fun watching me slap away at a scroll all day."

Pyrrha made a noise in the back of her throat, halfway between a growl and a whimper. She extended her arms and wiggled her fingers. "C'mere." She whined plaintively.

Jaune rolled his eyes and meandered over to the beds. "That bad, huh?"

"I've had to discard _thirteen_ books featuring a bland female protagonist in a love triangle- actually, it's not a triangle because both guys are interested in her, it's more like a love point- anyway. They're all horrid." She indicated a pile of books that appeared to have been thrown across the room- gently, but thrown nonetheless. "And the rest are just..." She floundered as she tried to think of a word. "Eurgh. Not even worth reading."

Jaune sat down on the beds and chuckled. "Yeah, I don't know what you were expecting. This place has been in isolation for like two decades already. Stands to reason they only have all the old crappy books."

"I was expecting... well, I wasn't expecting being cooped up in a tiny apartment for a week, that's for sure." She grumbled.

"You think this is bad? Imagine what it's like for Nora. Or Ruby and Yang. I'm half-surprised the city hasn't been burnt down yet." Jaune flopped down next to her. "All things considered, there could be worse ways to spend a week. And worse people." He winked. "And the view isn't so bad."

"Mr Arc, are you flirting with me?" Pyrrha asked, her face breaking into a grin.

"Well, kinda." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck, a light dusting of pink on his cheeks. "How am I doing so far?"

She scooted next to him and grabbed his hand in her own, gently rubbing his knuckles. "You're doing just fine." She murmured as she brought his hand to her mouth and pressed her lips to his knuckles.

Jaune chuckled nervously as she rubbed his hand against her face, his cheeks flushing. "Huh. Wow." He stammered. "Didn't think that one would work quite so well."

Pyrrha repositioned herself so she could lean against Jaune. "Just goes to show that you should try flirting with me more." She mumbled.

"If you keep kissing my hands, I think I can manage a few more things." Jaune agreed. "Like, uh..." He thought for a moment, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "Um. Crap, now that I'm on the spot, I can't think of anything."

Pyrrha let out a peal of laughter. "Well, I can think of a few things about _you_." She let go of his hand and tousled his hair gently. "You always try your hardest. You never give up." She traced his ear and jawline with her nails. "You're not afraid to ask for help anymore. And you're honest."

She placed a chaste kiss on his chin. "And you're very handsome."

Jaune's face had continued to redden as Pyrrha spoke, until he resembled a tomato. "Not fair." He said as he tucked his chin into his neck.

"Of course not. But all of that was true." Pyrrha rested her head against his shoulder. "You are an amazing person, Jaune. Not because of your father, or grandfather, or whatever. Because you are _you_. And I wouldn't want it any other way."

"Never do anything by halves, do you?" He finally looked at her, face still flushed.

Pyrrha shook her head slightly. "If you stop halfway, you'll never know what it's like, Jaune. And we _both_ know what you can do when you go the whole way."

He was quite for a long moment. "Yeah, I guess that is true."

She nudged him with her shoulder. "Glad you agree with me."

"And I didn't?"

"I'd... _convince_ you."

They both laughed.

End


End file.
